Costa Rica

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Costa Rica Beaches

I know you have heard a lot about Costa Rica Beaches. They are special because they are surrounded by diversible forests. And many have coral reefs to explore.

Manuel Antonio Beach

Costa Rica beaches offer a great variety of activities, such as scuba diving, boat trips through the mangroves, sports fishing, surfing, among others. Also, the sand of these beaches vary in texture and color: white, gray, yellow, even black.

911 miles of coast between the Pacific and the Caribbean to enjoy (a lot for such a small land). I have bronze skin color so, I don't need to lay under the sun to get a tan. But if you want to relax while getting a tan, you can do so at any of this beaches.

You can access the beaches along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts and enjoy the all-year-long-warm-waters at any time of the year.

You can plan your visit according to your interest and budget. There are several hotels near the coast, from big all-inclusive hotels to cozy boutique hotels. There you will spend memorable time with your spouse, family or friends.

Guanacaste Region

For adventures and fun, to the Guanacaste region you should go. It's one of the most popular destinations among tourists and they definitely go back home suntanned because there is plenty of sun almost all year round.

The Santa Elena Peninsula has secluded beaches and small boutique hotels, you know, those cozy hotels that make you feel like you are in a doll house. But the Gulf of Papagayo has big hotels with a lot of accommodations.

At Guanacaste you can swim, surf, scuba dive, fish, windsurf, beach volleyball, golf or just walk along the beach while the sun kisses your face.

If you are a good eater, I recommend you to go to Guanacaste, there, they are good at cooking, and have really good desserts. Don't miss the "cajetas", the fudge-like sweets; they are yummy! And the corn-based dishes like the "bizcochos" (cornbread), the "arroz de maiz"(rice and corn), the "pozol" (corn and pork meat stew) and the "tortillas" (you know what they are).

Getting there

DON'T take a flight to Juan Santamaria International Airport in the province of Alajuela (The airport code is SJO sugesting it is in San Jose, but it's not) It is located at 3km south from El Coco city, Alajuela and 23km west off San Jose.

If you want to get there faster by air, and acoid 4 hours by land (from Juan Santamaria International Airport), take a flight directly to the Daniel Oduber International Airport and it will only take you 60 minutes by land to get to Guanacaste. You can also get there by land from different locations in the country.

Central and Mid Pacific Region

There are many attractive places in the central region. Cruise chips land in the Port of Puntarenas and bird- watching at Caracara National Park are some of the attractions of this area.

To enjoy the best seafood dishes, come to Puntarenas. You definitely have to get a "ceviche", or a whole fried fish. The "Churchill" is another speciality in this region. The "Churchill is a dessert made with crushed ice, sweetend condensed milk, flavored syrups, powdered milk and a scoop of ice cream, umm yummy, huh!

The mid pacific is a combination of sun, beaches and forests with Manuel Antonio National Park, a protected area.

For surfers, Jaco and Hermosa beaches are absolutely ideal for this sport and great sites for nightlife.

There are many beach hotels with comfortable accomodations. Now, to get to this zone, there is a three-hour drive from the Juan Santamaria International Airport.